"Ah (*°▽°)ﾉ"
Kitagawa Marin felt her body being lifted and pulled backward. She turned her head to look.
It was Shikimori.
Shikimori pulled with an expressionless face until Kitagawa Marin let go of Saiki's hand and kept some distance, only then setting Kitagawa Marin down.
"What's wrong, Shikimori?"
Kitagawa Marin asked with a puzzled look.
"Did something happen?"
"You still have the nerve to ask!"
Shikimori glanced at Saiki, whose expression showed no fluctuation, then turned back, leaned close to Kitagawa Marin, and whispered, "You've been holding Saiki-kun's hand the whole time. That's not good. It puts him in a really awkward position."
Kitagawa Marin seemed unable to catch the implication in Shikimori's words and replied casually, "Oh, that's it? I don't think he's awkward at all!"
"Haha~"
Kitagawa Marin felt a vein throb. Shikimori grabbed Kitagawa Marin's shoulders, pulled her even closer, gave a light laugh, and spoke in a cool voice carrying a hint of chill: "I said he looks really awkward!"
"…"
"I get it, I get it. It was just a joke. I know you better than that."
Kitagawa Marin saw Shikimori's expression gradually turning strange and felt cold sweat break out on her face. She placed her hands on the other's shoulders and replied with a sheepish laugh: "Just kidding. I won't make a move on Saiki-kun, so don't worry."
Shikimori rolled her eyes at Kitagawa Marin and huffed as she turned away.
"What are you even talking about? I didn't mean it like that at all."
Shikimori could tell Kitagawa Marin was still pretending she hadn't understood anything earlier. Was she deliberately teasing her?
The moment she realized that, Shikimori tightly hugged Kitagawa Marin and pinched her cheeks.
"You dishonest girl!"
"Mmph, sorry, sorry!"
"…"
(Yare yare, did someone mistake me for someone else? Am I being treated as a substitute?)
Saiki straightened his chair and sat down. From listening to Kitagawa Marin's inner thoughts earlier, he'd known she had confused him with someone else.
(Is there really someone in the world who looks just like me?)
"Ding ding ding ding ding!"
The class bell rang. Kitagawa Marin also pulled away from her playful tussle with Shikimori, walked over to Saiki's side, and returned to her own seat.
That's right, with the seat change this time, Kitagawa Marin had ended up right next to Saiki.
"Hehe."
After exchanging a few words with Shikimori, Kitagawa Marin returned to her seat, propped her cheek on her hand, and smiled happily at Saiki.
Saiki: ...
Saiki turned his head away, pretending he hadn't seen anything and comforting himself.
(Just pretend you didn't see it, pretend you didn't see it.)
Meanwhile, Kubo Nagisa, who had been moved to a new seat far away from Saiki at the front row, puffed out her cheeks, crossed her arms, and leaned back in her chair, clearly in a bad mood.
"Mm~ Seriously, why did we have to change seats again? It's really… uncomfortable, and so far from Saiki-kun. Ah, Kitagawa-san got assigned right next to Saiki-kun, and earlier she even… held his hand…"
Shiina Mahiru, sitting nearby, watched the emotionally unstable Kubo Nagisa muttering to herself and couldn't help reminding her: "Kubo-san, class is about to start. Stop talking to yourself. Is your mood really that bad?"
Kubo Nagisa turned to look at the calm Shiina Mahiru beside her. A flash of surprise crossed her eyes, and the next second they filled with curiosity: "Shiina-san, you're so calm!"
"What's wrong? Is there a problem?"
Shiina Mahiru listened to Kubo Nagisa's question. Her face kept its smile without any change, and her pupils showed not the slightest ripple.
"Nothing."
Kubo Nagisa [I originally thought Shiina-san and Saiki-kun had some kind of relationship. After all, they're neighbors, so it's easy for sparks to fly, and Shiina-san goes over to Saiki-kun's house from time to time. Looks like Shiina-san is completely normal!]
(Yeah, we're perfectly normal.)
"Alright, alright, time for class. Everyone, get out your textbooks."
Hiratsuka Shizuka on the podium took out the Japanese language textbook and started droning.
"So, Kubo-san, stop thinking about all that random stuff. Just focus on class and listen properly."
Shiina Mahiru spoke while taking out her textbook and setting it up, then fixed her gaze on the teacher at the front with an appearance of serious attention.
"Okay."
Kubo Nagisa nodded and also took out her Japanese language textbook, planning to listen attentively for now.
Kubo Nagisa [As expected of the class president. She can stay composed in any situation and always puts studying first.]
While thinking this, she couldn't help stealing a glance at Shiina Mahiru, who was diligently reading, then turned back. But it seemed like she saw something strange, so she turned her head again.
Kubo Nagisa's mouth twitched. She patted Shiina Mahiru beside her.
"What's wrong?"
Shiina Mahiru asked gently.
"Um, Shiina-san, you grabbed the wrong textbook. We're having Japanese class, but you took out math."
"..."
The stunned Kubo Nagisa looked at the equally stunned Shiina Mahiru. For a moment, neither spoke.
"Ah, oops, my bad."
Shiina Mahiru scratched her head, switched back to the Japanese textbook, and said softly: "I didn't notice earlier!"
Kubo Nagisa [Looks like Shiina-san isn't as calm on the surface as she seems…]
...
After school.
Saiki finished packing up and left the classroom. Umaru came running over, grabbed the corner of his clothes, and said softly: "Saiki-shishou, come with me for a sec!"
[Why is it you again? Didn't I tell you not to randomly approach me at school?]
Looking at the cheerful girl in front of him, Saiki had no intention of engaging. After all, whenever she came to him, it was always the same thing: either playing games or playing games. She'd been pretty well-behaved lately, so why was she openly coming to find him at school now?
"It's after school already!"
[After school is still at school.]
"Don't sweat the small stuff. Come with Umaru, pretty please~"
Saiki helplessly let himself be dragged along by Umaru.
They ended up at a door labeled "Handicraft Club." Umaru led Saiki inside. There were several sewing machines.
"Look, Saiki-shishou, isn't it impressive!"
Umaru sat to the side, picked up a piece of clothing, started working the sewing machine pedal, and chatted with Saiki.
Saiki looked around at the handmade items and clothes hanging nearby, then asked puzzledly.
[When did the costume room turn into a handicraft club?]
Saiki remembered that last semester when he'd come for club activities and looked around, he hadn't seen a handicraft club.
"Oh, that's because…"
…